Ten years of data analysis led to the conclusion of scientists that heightened levels of amyloid plaques are precursors of the early onset of Alzheimer's disease. The study headed by Senior Author and Director of the USC Alzheimer's Therapeutic Research Institute (ATRI) said that "at the early stage of the disease, it is the right time to treat and apply the anti-amyloid therapy."

At the Alzheimer's early stages, the detection of a plaque build up is visible to scientists as elevated levels on adults begin to clog brain passages by the thickening of plaques. The affected patients experience faster mental deterioration as the disease progresses to a full-blown Alzheimer's disease. The team of researchers from the Keck School of Medicine, USC, obtained their findings on data that took ten years to collect.

Lead author of the study and an Associate Professor of Neurology at USC ATRI, Michael Donahue says that the disease starts before the symptoms occur and when Alzheimer's is in its early stages, medical interventions should be set to inhibit its progress. The team links the brain amyloid plaque build up to high cholesterol levels in the blood. The symptoms are warning signs of two impending health risks, Alzheimer's or a heart attack. Specialists advise an early medical intervention to thwart these two major diseases from occurring as the attacks will cause irreversible damage to the human body, reports Medical Xpress.

The detection of Alzheimer's early stage of amyloid plaque not only cause Alzheimer's but will also result to Diabetes 2. These lumps of sticky proteins form years before the symptoms show on patients. Results of the study are published in the journal of the American Medical Association on June 13 using 10 years of data from the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative, which indicates the biomarkers before Alzheimer's attack. Aizen co-directs the clinical core in coordination with the USC ATRI, reports USC News.

Alzheimer's used to be a disease that is only detectable after death in an autopsy. Huge steps in research and development made by Aisen and the USC ATRI identifies Alzheimer's early stages by implementing a set of cognitive tests known as Preclinical Alzheimer's Cognitive Composite. The tests and variations are applied to detect Alzheimer's before Dementia sets in. There are 70 USC researchers involved in the study and research regarding the Alzheimer's disease. Ronald Peterson of the Mayo Clinic, Harvard Medical School's Reisa Sperling, Michael Weiner of the University of California and USC ATRI's Chung Kai Sun, also contributed to the study.